Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The aim of the project was to extract data from appropriate farm records and other sources in England for the period 1500-2000 to address the questions of whether and how English agriculture was 'sustainable' in the period. The objective was to reconfigure English agriculture for the period within a framework defined by the modern concept of 'sustainable development'. The project had five aims and objectives: i) To recontextualise English agricultural history in the framework and language of modern concepts of sustainable development ii) To view the agricultural history of England since 1500 in a manner which is methodologically different from the traditional line of argument which concentrates on economic and technological issues iii) To raise questions about the shift from sustainable to non- sustainable agriculture at different periods, and to ask why it occurred iv) To ask whether the historical experience offers valuable insights for an understanding of modern agricultural issues, within the context of sustainable development v) To prepare a dataset on agriculture in England c.1500-2000 in the context of sustainable agricultural development The impact of this research is to complement the more traditional approaches to English agricultural history in the period. On the one hand this has been mainly a descriptive characterisation of agricultural change, usually without a theoretical framework, and on the other it has concentrated on the measured outputs of agriculture. This project employed the modern concept of sustainability to give the processes of change a much needed framework, and within that framework it looks at the implications of the inputs and their relationship with maintaining the quality of the soil. Sustainability has become one of the most fashionable social science concepts, and although it developed on a global basis, and within that mainly on a third world basis, it nevertheless offers significant opportunities for adaptation to English agricultural history.

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Each record is controlled by the following standard template: i) County location (38 counties). ii) Place location within county (over 326 villages, parishes, townships, and localities). iii) Named archive or record repository (county record office or archive; city library or archive; university archive) with up to three methods of giving accession numbers and/or titles or descriptions for each record within its archive. iv) A broad keyword based description of the nature of the record, including whether they derive from accounts, cropping books, diaries, farm account and notebooks, manorial record, local regulations and field orders, stewards' materials, terriers, valuations, etc. v) Dates covered by the record - the earliest record is a reference to pasture leases for West Putford in Devon from 1576-83, and the most recent record relates to tenants on an unnamed farm on the Wentworth estate in Yorkshire West Riding for the period 1916-46. Each record contains a description of the material. This is rarely a full transcript, instead an indication of the nature of the record is provided, but access to the full details would require a visit to the relevant archive. Each record is also defined by four parameters regarding ecological sustainability. The paramount definition of farming in a sustainable manner is, 'that farming that meets the needs of the current generation of farmers without compromising the ability of future generations of farmers to meet their own needs' (definition adapted from the Brundtland definition of sustainable development, 1987). The four parameters we have chosen to categorise the historical agricultural record for this purpose are: Stewardship: This is defined as the preservation of the environment for future generations in which two aspects are closely related to ecological sustainability. One is the control of husbandry to protect the environment, whether by the manor court or parish vestry, or through the combined actions landowners and their tenants. The second is concerned with minimizing the use of inputs based on non-renewable resources, of which inorganic fertilizer, chemical pest and weed controls, and the use of fossil fuels, are examples. Natural Resources: The definition of this derives from the requirement that for ecological sustainability there must be the maximization of natural resources. This involves farming in such a manner to make best use of local conditions including soil, climate and altitude, and within a system that is sufficiently flexible to respond to changing conditions and needs. Loss of Resources: The definition of this parameter derives from the need to minimize the loss of resources from the farming system. Such losses occur through erosion, leaching, and loss to the atmosphere arising from competition from weeds, pests, and disease. Losses also occur through overproduction. An important element in the prevention of loss is good husbandry of both plants and animals. Another is the use of ground cover to protect the soil. Recycling of Resources: This is defined as the requirement to maximize resources through careful recycling. Biodiversity of plants helps to ensure that nutrients are recycles through the system. Recycling of the by-products of crops grown for consumption off the farm lessens the inevitable loss from producing cash crops. The close integration of livestock and crops, particularly arable crops helps resource recycling. It follows that only aspects of sustainable management are extracted for the purpose of this database, the implication being that much other information relating generally to farming can be found in the same archives. Please note: this study does not include information on named individuals and would therefore not be useful for personal family history research.

Purposive selection/case studies

Transcription of existing materials

Compilation or synthesis of existing material